A rolling stand for a big vise.

[Oregon rock crusher]

I pieced together a stand for a big Yost vise over the last couple weekends. Most of the steel was from the scrap pile or leftover drops. The heavy plate for the top I got from Drives who has really helped beef up my iron inventory...
The 2-1/2" thick top plate was a little undersize so I had to weld a 4" extension to it. Also needed to clean up the front "raw" edge which had a lifting eye scabbed on. A large section of 5/8" wall box makes up the body. I cut a door in it and made some hinges out of a large drive chain link. The lower frame is 2"x4" solid Bar stock drilled for the axle shafts. Here are a few pics. Ed.

 

[lis2323]

That is simply awesome, Ed!! I like the large roller chain for hinges.

What did you use for cutting the door opening?


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[Oregon rock crusher]

To finish the stand up I used some 10" roller bearing wheels scavanged from an old hand truck. 2nd life Darnell double roller casters sit under the front plate. There are jack screws at the corners to help keep it stable. I was shooting for just over twice the weight of the nearly #300 vise in this stand and it comes in at a bit over #700 empty so it should have the mass to keep from getting tippy in use. A few more fab pics and the stand after paint. It rolls easily and when you turn the vise sideways it really cuts down on the footprint. I'm looking forward to using it now. Ed.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

That is simply awesome, Ed!! I like the large roller chain for hinges.

What did you use for cutting the door opening?


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Thanks lis, I just used my hand torch. I do use a magnetic cutting guide for the straight runs. I got one of those Milwaukee metal cutting circular saws for Christmas and used it on the 3/8" deck plates. Cuts steel like it was wood and I love it. Ed.

 

[jumpstart]

Pretty awesome

 

[lis2323]

Thanks for posting those “finished” pics. I’m a big fan of heavy duty and that is the NICEST stand I’ve EVER seen. Well done!!!


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[LXCam]

That's really cool! I had to laugh reading a rolling stand (before reading) thinking if you're going to have one, it better be heavy. Ya well you got that covered nooo problem.

 

[davewo]

Cool! It could double as a safe. What are the specs on that vise? The mouth is huge.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

Thanks for the comments Jumpstart, lis, LX, and davewo. Here are a few more pics of the finished stand. The vise is a Yost 208 which has 8" jaws. It is 15" tall so I tried to keep the stand height down to keep the top of the jaws at a good working height. It ended up being 40" tall which is a little higher than I'd like for a big vise but it closely matches a 6" Athol I also have on a simple stand so it will work with it on long dual vise projects. The slide and spindle length is 34" long which is the exact length of the stand base. The Yost will swivel 360 degrees and when the spindle is over the left side it is exactly square with the base so packing/parking things right up to the ends fits perfect. Weight on the vise alone is 294# by my bathroom scale. The storage cabinet is strong enough to be a safe...I've got some bending jigs that will fit down there. Ed.

 

[BD1]

That's one heck of a setup. I have one on wheels I made but pretty primitive to yours.

 

[jabberwoki]

****** nice mate... when do I pick it up?

 

[Beegs]

Very nice!
I'm assuming you cleaned up the vice...What did you use for a final finish? I just picked up a nice older vice and was thinking linseed oil.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

That's one heck of a setup. I have one on wheels I made but pretty primitive to yours.

Same idea alright. You have some nice vises there. Love the handlebars on the rough terrain vise. I haven't let mine start drinking beer yet but I think it's about that time.

****** nice mate... when do I pick it up?

I guess you'll have to come on down and give it a go jabber.....I hear you aussie boys are mighty stout but I'd still be surprised if you can lift it.

Very nice!
I'm assuming you cleaned up the vice...What did you use for a final finish? I just picked up a nice older vice and was thinking linseed oil.

I thought about using BLO but didn't want to wait while it set up so I went with a coat of fluid film instead. I have several other vises mounted completely naked and only the ones exposed and out on the deck rust up on me. I keep the main shop shut up tight and warmer when the outside steel starts sweating.

 

[BD1]

Same idea alright. You have some nice vises there. Love the handlebars on the rough terrain vise. I haven't let mine start drinking beer yet but I think it's about that time.

I don't drink that stuff, A buddy was over and set it on it. My vises upgraded to IPA'S

 

[KMScott]

Really nice Ed, finding steel that thick is tuff out here in Colorado. I like the choices you used on the rolling stand. The Yost is as big as several Railroad vises I have seen in Kansas.

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

Thank you Dr. Scott...Heavy steel is fairly common in my line of work and I've been involved in quite a few industrial plant clean up projects which has yielded some interesting castings and extrusions. Still the heavy slab for the top was a piece I got from DRIVESITFAR along with quite a bit of other heavy drops from his steel stash up North. Thanks Drives. 2nd Choice would have been an old ripper shank but the stand would have been completely different if I'd used it.

This big Yost vise does mean quite a bit to me because of how I got it. It has been in one of the crusher / truck shops the company has here in Oregon for many years and has been used hard for most of that time. The story of how it got there was that one of the long time mechanics had found it up in Alaska near an abandoned mine site and brought it back to Oregon with him and mounted it on a sturdy wooden table with a steel top. I had seen and visited it many times over the years and tried to trade the mechanics there out of it offering some pretty nice vises but seemed to be getting nowhere.

The joke had started to be that I "may" be able to get it when I retired. During one of the companies recent Holiday lunches for the crew several of the other managers told me they had something important to discuss outside. As we got close to my PU and were about to gather around the box I could see the big Yost was in the back. A very nice gesture from my co-workers and I didn't even have to retire first! I did take the shop a couple of nice 6" vises afterwards and they have them but the company had already replaced it with two new vises that were mounted on that old table. Anyway after all that I figured I should do my best to do this vise justice and put it on a suitable stand. Ed.

 

[KMScott]

Great story Ed, says a lot about you and how your peers feel about you. I am planning on a trip to Kansas to meet up with GJ member Demoman who can help me with thick steel since that is what he does for a living, I have a vise of his I worked on I need to get back to him and even though I have not mentioned that I need steel I know he can help me. I found 2-1/2" plates in Denver at a scrap yard but $500 for the top and bottom plates was to much for rusty old steel. Lucky for you to have drives close by.

I have three Railroad vises and have came up with the original dimensions of the railroad stands you see in the old pictures. GJ member Vises from Texas helped me in my drawing. I am sharing it in case some one wants to build one. Again great job on the two stands, keep up the great work.

 

[cbacres]

That's a really cool story of how you ended up with the vise.

I like the massiveness of the stand, especially the hinges.

Nice job.

 

[SpencerR]

Nice work! Looks solid. I have a big vise in my backyard too, I think I need something like that.. Thanks for an idea!

 

[royce]

Ed,
That is a great story and a fantastic stand.
Looking at the pic of the door cut out, you sure have a firm command of your gas axe.
These days of plasma and CNC, there are not that many left that run a torch like you.
I'll say it again, well done.

Royce

 

[1/2 Cup]

Oregon rock crusher that is just awesome..

 

[Oregon rock crusher]

I have three Railroad vises and have came up with the original dimensions of the railroad stands you see in the old pictures. GJ member Vises from Texas helped me in my drawing. I am sharing it in case some one wants to build one. Again great job on the two stands, keep up the great work.

That is a neat vintage photo of the RR shop. Those big vises bolted on heavy plate to the floor would be solid work stations. Still they pale in size to the locomotives. No doubt demoman will be able to come up with the heavy plate for building a replica. Great drawing and nice that you have three of those big vises. Ed.

That's a really cool story of how you ended up with the vise.

I like the massiveness of the stand, especially the hinges.

Nice job.

Thanks cbacres. The hinges were simple but they do help with the safe box look. When I cut the barrels off the leftover piece was just right for the door strap so that's where it went.

Nice work! Looks solid. I have a big vise in my backyard too, I think I need something like that.. Thanks for an idea!

Thanks Spencer. Big vises in the backyard do need mounted....good projects.

Ed,
That is a great story and a fantastic stand.
Looking at the pic of the door cut out, you sure have a firm command of your gas axe.
These days of plasma and CNC, there are not that many left that run a torch like you.
I'll say it again, well done.

Royce

Thank you Royce. I cut the door pretty early so the coffee hadn't kicked in yet. Still it was cold and my mask was fogging up. You can see in the pic where I overran the stop mark on one corner....nothing a little weld couldn't fix. What surprised me was how much stress was on that piece. the door really sprung when cut out and I had to press about a 1/2" bow out of it to get it to fit back in.

Oregon rock crusher that is just awesome..

Thank you 1/2 cup. This was one of those projects I really enjoyed working on but it sure burned through my holiday vacation days in a blink. Ed.

 

[lis2323]

Wow Ed your oxy-acetylene cut skill experience really shows.

I saw that overrun cut line on the door corner and that’s why I initially asked how the cut was made. It almost looked like you had used a circular saw for that 5/8” wall (??!) but then noticed the equally thin kerf on the 4 radius.




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